Master of Strange Dao

The matter had reached its conclusion, and the sealing was coming to an end.

Yu Ziqing shook his head and vanished from sight.

It was no longer appropriate for him to remain there. If the terrifying Nine-tailed Demon Fox caused an uproar, he could be caught in the aftermath and might very well die.

Yu Ziqing was filled with doubts, too many things seemed amiss.

The Demon Concubine was off, that Prefectural Governor of Dingmao City, Chou Qing, was off, everything was off.

Yet oddly, everything also seemed quite normal.

Everyone thought it was rational and normal, which was exactly what made it abnormal.

Yu Ziqing felt that he had probably grasped the main point, why the chief director had laid out his plans many years in advance.

Summoning the Ba had drawn Han Dong; Han Dong could not possibly give up on the Ba.

Therefore, Yu Ziqing estimated that when the time came, it would likely be an overt scheme, informing Han Dong of the Ba's origins.

Then, they would tell Han Dong that without resolving a certain sealing, the dust had yet to settle, and without dealing with the Demon Concubine, there would always be flaws here and how.

Making Han Dong willingly come to help.

The silence within the Demon Concubine's sealing, spreading rumors noiselessly, yet making everyone deeply believe them.

Even in the end, not only in Dingmao City but almost all of Dadui's cities, and there were even those who sent troops to press the last Emperor Dui.

Even the front-line army engaged in battle with Daqian voluntarily retreated three thousand miles to force Emperor Dui.

The situation had become so ugly, Yu Ziqing didn't believe those people were not swayed by the rumors, and in fact, an overwhelming majority of the people, nearly ninety-nine percent, held an unwavering belief in them.

That is what had provided the shadow with a golden opportunity to harm Concubine Chen blatantly in the end.

And in the end, it was all because of rumors.

Even considering the current situation in Dali, even though Yu Ziqing decisively interjected and turned things topsy-turvy, turning it into a war of words between Dali and Daqian,

there were still some who unwaveringly believed that the Crown Prince had practiced the Langya Incarnation Technique.

It was the sort of belief that, even if they were compelled to death, they would proclaim their disbelief out of fear, admitting they were rumors, but deep down, they still held the same convictions.

The affair of the Demon Concubine's sealing and the matter of the Crown Prince of Dali, at the core, had the same origins.

Considering the rapid pace of events within the Demon Concubine's sealing, a mere few months were all it took to progress to the point where Concubine Chen was driven to death.

And both Cultivators and the Divine Dynasty were not known for their high efficiency in handling matters.

If things were to proceed in a normal fashion, Yu Ziqing estimated that it would take at least a few months for Dali to deal with this matter, and to have the decrees spread throughout Dali.

And this speed was certainly far slower than the spread of rumors.

By then, even if the most crucial person, Emperor Li, would not be as weak as Emperor Dui, Dali would not replicate the outcome of the Demon Concubine's sealing.

The final outcome, however, would definitely not be pretty.

An unstable position as Crown Prince would be the best outcome.

If things went poorly, the end might see another repetition, with the border army claiming to be enforcing loyalty to the throne.

By that time, Dali would find it impossible not to descend into chaos.

And the Crown Prince of Dali might even be forced to abdicate.

Unfortunately, before the power of the rumors could brew, they were disrupted by Yu Ziqing's haphazard actions, which made a mess of everything.

The chief director's plan had been spoiled in one aspect, and he would undoubtedly pay more attention to the other.

Yet, no one had come to the Abyss, which surprised Yu Ziqing.

What the chief director had done in Dali, with someone or something in the Demon Concubine's sealing capable of achieving similar feats, this place must be of great importance to them.

Yu Ziqing did not return to the Demon Concubine's sealing.

Considering what he had previously heard inside, that Concubine Chen had been in the palace city for three hundred years, he sought and reviewed all the sealings from three hundred years prior, entering them one by one, searching for information related to Dingmao City from those places.

Because this time, in Dingmao City, a multitude of information from other cities had appeared, so in other cities, there was naturally hope to find information related to Dingmao City.

This also gave Yu Ziqing a new approach, using the information from one sealing to resolve another.

...

South of Jinlan Mountain, Han Dong—using the True Intent of the Green Lotus Sword Manual—transformed into a green lotus, enveloping the ice coffin and sinking it underground, completely severing the repeated summoning attempts.

He stood in front of the grave, bearing a solemn expression, attempting to track the source in reverse, but unfortunately, he couldn't trace anything.

Being a Sword Cultivator of the purest kind, he was not skilled in the numerous chaotic Dharma Methods.

He was skilled only in killing.

He had been wanting to kill for several days now, and could now only heed Yu Ziqing's advice to keep watch here.

To respond to all changes with constancy.

Waiting to see if anyone could find this place, could try to take action by force.

Unfortunately, after waiting a long time without seeing anyone, the trembling Black Sword was eager to leave its sheath but could not find a target.

...

Outside the Capital City of Dali, in a desolate and silent graveyard, a host of people who had died within the palace city were buried here.

They were mostly eunuchs and palace maids, and all had either died a natural death or had been sacrificed.

Those who had been executed for their mistakes probably didn't get the chance to be buried here.

That's because most of the people sent to the palace to become eunuchs had no hope of returning to their ancestral lands.

Even if their families still existed, their names had already been removed from the family records.

Unless a eunuch had held a high position in life and had greatly supported his birth family, there was a chance they would be listed in the family records and have their remains returned.

Unfortunately, if there was a choice and a powerful family to rely on, who would choose to become a eunuch?